


the waves are rolling (and i want more)

by seaunicorn



Category: Critical Role (Web Series)
Genre: Awkward Flirting, Beau and Yasha are awkward and dumb, Canon Compliant, F/F, Flirting, Unresolved Romantic Tension, episode 106 spoilers, that’s it
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-08-16
Updated: 2020-08-16
Packaged: 2021-03-06 04:22:20
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,168
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25937368
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/seaunicorn/pseuds/seaunicorn
Summary: It felt like a dance they were doing, talking in circles, awkwardly flirting, pushing more and more to see who would be more bold, who would take the furthest step. Beau wasn’t entirely sure of Yasha's intentions, but she hoped for something more. At least for now, the dance was fun.It’s an awkward, tense 40 minute walk back down to the beach. Beau and Yasha are really bad at talking. (Episode 106 spoilers)
Relationships: Beauregard Lionett/Yasha
Comments: 12
Kudos: 241





	the waves are rolling (and i want more)

**Author's Note:**

> I love the awkward tension and the slow burn between Beau and Yasha so I wanted to write this and fill in the gap of whatever happened in that 40 minute hike down the cliff!
> 
> Fic title is from The Ocean by Wallis Bridge

"Well, um… Maybe we should go check—”

“Yeah, the others! They might think we’re—”

“They probably— they probably think we’re dead. That’s probably not… a good thing.”

Neither of them made any move to leave. Beau scuffed her foot against the muddy ground beneath them, holding her hands behind her back, no idea what to do with them. Her skin was still tingling where Yasha held onto her a moment ago.The eye contact they held was long and drawn out. Yasha said nothing; she didn’t look at her any differently than she had many times before, but Beau felt her pulse quicken.

If Yasha stared at her like that any longer, Beau’s resolve was going to break and she would just throw caution over the cliff and—

“Okay, let’s go.”

Beau nodded quickly. “Yeah, okay!” She shoved that last thought to the furthest recesses of her mind, locking it away until she was alone again, meditating, or trying to fall asleep. Maybe then she could let herself indulge in such a fantasy. But not now.

They probably shouldn’t tempt fate again by taking the quick route and jumping over the edge. While that first jump had been fun, Beau was still pretty wrecked after the battle with Vokodo. She eyed the natural path down, leading into the forest for a slower descent. It wouldn’t be as quick, but it would definitely be safer. And maybe she wasn’t in the biggest rush to end her time alone with Yasha so soon.

It was rare that the two were ever together, away from the rest of the group. It was partly due to the fact that, whenever she and Yasha were alone together, they had a tendency to become the two least eloquent people in Exandria, always blushing and fumbling over their words.

In all honesty, Beau was impressed with herself for holding a two minute conversation just now, considering how she felt like her insides were about to melt whenever Yasha so much as looked at her. And when she smiled? Beau still wasn’t certain if she was still alive. Perhaps she died in that fall, in the arms of an angel, and this was her spirit talking.

What a way to go, right?

But then, Yasha gently squeezed her shoulder and nodded in the direction of the path down the cliff and Beau was grounded in reality once again.

She wasn’t dead. In fact, she felt more alive than she had in a good, long time. And when she followed Yasha into the trees, she walked with a new spring in her step. Her cheeks were flushed as she stared at the back of Yasha’s head, hoping she would turn around and grace her day with that beautiful smile once again. She had never seen Yasha with such a bright smile and that much joy in her eyes before. Beau hoped it wasn’t a one-time thing, and mentally promised herself she would do whatever it took to see Yasha smile like that again.

Beau caught up with Yasha easily, and they kept pace for a while, walking side by side. After a few minutes of eerie quiet broken only by the rustling of leaves and dirt as they walked, Beau couldn’t help herself. She chanced a sideways glance at Yasha.

As her eyes darted over to the taller woman, she barely caught a glimpse of Yasha’s head shooting forward. Had she been watching Beau?

Beau looked down at her side and noticed Yasha’s fingers nervously playing with the hem of her shirt, like she didn’t know what to do with her hands. Then, Beau caught sight of something white and almost glowing against the dark colors of her ensemble.

“Hold on,” Beau said. She grabbed Yasha’s arm and brought them both to a halt. “You’ve got a little something…” Beau trailed off as she reached for Yasha’s shoulder for the source of light. It was tucked under Yasha’s cloak and held there by only the force of gravity.

Beau pulled out a single pure-white feather, a bit smaller than her hand. Though the wings were gone, it still seemed to have a faint, celestial glow to it. She brushed against the surface with her index finger and gasped. It was the softest thing she had ever felt. She looked up and saw Yasha watching her intently.

“It’s still hard to believe it was real, right?” Yasha whispered. Her eyes were fixated on Beau’s hands holding the feather. “It feels like something out of a dream.”

“Honestly,” Beau muttered, “I thought I might have died and that you were an angel.” Yasha chuckled lightly, a beautiful sound to Beau’s ears that made her intestines feel like they were twisting in her gut. She glanced up at Yasha. The faint smile on her lips bolstered Beau’s confidence for a moment. “I still think half of that is true,” she added.

Yasha’s eyes widened, and her pale cheeks flushed pink as she put together what Beau had implied. “No—I don’t think I—that’s not possible—“

“Hey,” Beau said, cutting off her nervous rambling. “I told you there was something special about you.”

By now, Yasha was fully blushing. Beau was a little proud of herself, if she was being honest. She had been mostly reduced to a blushing and stuttering mess earlier, but she had been able to come back and string enough words together to cause the same reaction in Yasha.

It felt like a dance they were doing, talking in circles, awkwardly flirting, pushing more and more to see who would be more bold, who would take the furthest step. She wasn’t entirely sure of Yasha's intentions, but she hoped for something more.

At least for now, the dance was fun.

Beau glanced back down at the feather in her hands, still in awe of what had transpired, in awe of the woman next to her. She didn’t quite know what to do with the feather. It felt far too special to just cast away in the jungle, but—

“You can keep it, if you want.”

Beau looked to Yasha curiously. “This?” she asked, holding up the feather.

“Or don’t,” Yasha shrugged awkwardly. “I don’t know. I thought maybe it could be a reminder of today,” she said. “Of me.”

Beau felt her cheeks heat up. She looked over Yasha’s face. Her eyes, bright and genuine. The corner of her lip was upturned in a small smile. Her pale cheeks were still slightly tinged pink. A hand came up and nervously brushed the stray hairs away from her face. The sun peeked through the trees and cast an angelic glow at the top of her head. Maybe it was a coincidence or a trick of the light, but it perfectly framed Yasha from behind, and Beau felt like she was intruding upon a work of art. She wanted to capture it in her mind and always remember the beauty of this moment.

She gave a dopey grin and looked down to hide the blush on her cheeks, scuffing her shoes in the dirt. “I don’t think I could ever forget you,” Beau muttered.

The air around them grew thick with an awkward tension, somehow even more palpable than when they stood at the top of the cliff, fumbling over their words. There was something more charged about this silence that gave Beau goosebumps and made her heart race in anticipation.

The croak of a frog pierced through the quiet and Beau nearly jumped out of her skin. Yasha chuckled, then cleared her throat. “We should probably keep moving.”

And Yasha took off, not waiting for Beau to follow.

Beau looked at the feather in her hands. She couldn’t just shove it into her pocket or her bag where it would likely get squished or bent in the journey, so instead she slid it into the side of her boot, hoping that would keep it safe enough until they found somewhere to rest and she could find a better home for it.

Beau took off after Yasha. She caught up easily, but lingered a few paces behind, still feeling too nervous to get too close, content to watch her march forward as her hair rustled in the breeze.

They walked for another twenty minutes in silence, focused on weaving their way through the thick trees and trying to remember which direction the beach was. It wasn’t difficult, but it kept Beau’s focus on something other than Yasha walking in front of her.

“The beach is this way,” Yasha said, pointing to a more precarious path through the jungle. “I think we can cut through over here.” The trees were closer together and the ground was littered with roots and fallen trees and rocks. Another person might shy away from the path, but it didn’t seem like a problem for Beau and Yasha.

“After you,” Beau said.

Yasha squeezed between two trees, then disappeared as she stepped off a rock. Beau followed behind. The drop was only a few yards down, so Beau jumped and landed delicately on her feet.

“It’s a bit more of this.” Yasha nodded toward the path that was strewn with rocks and logs and cracks in the ground. “Are you okay to keep going?”

Beau stood up and brushed a bit of dirt off her shoulder. “No problem.”

It was a few minutes of watching their feet and holding onto each other’s arms to make sure they didn’t slip. Eventually, Yasha stepped off another ledge and into a clear patch of jungle. The crashing waves were louder, so they were getting close.

Yasha turned around and held out a hand to Beau. “Here,” she said.

Beau looked at the ground. It was only a two foot drop. She could easily just step onto the forest floor herself without breaking a sweat. She definitely didn’t need any help, but she found herself reaching out to take Yasha’s hand anyway.

Yasha’s hands were warm and rough. Every bump and callous on her palm and fingertips as it brushed against Beau’s skin sent a shiver down her back. She gripped Yasha’s hand tight and stepped off the rock and onto the ground.

They kept their hands joined for a moment and stood in place, just looking at each other. Beau felt like she couldn’t breathe as she leaned in close. They were frozen there, the red thread between them drawn taut, but eventually Yasha turned her head toward the sound of the waves.

“We should go.”

Beau cleared her throat. “Yeah,” she muttered. “Yes.”

Yasha stepped forward, but didn’t let go of Beau’s hand.

Beau couldn’t hide the blush on her cheeks as she followed. Her hand felt so small in Yasha’s strong grip, but the hold she had was comforting.

They walked in silence along the now mostly clear path, but Beau’s mind was racing. She looked down at where their hands were joined between them. What did it mean?

The dirt began to turn to sand, and the trees were more and more sparse. She could see the ocean ahead of them where the tree line broke. They stopped right at the edge of the trees where the beach lay before them. The waves crashed on the shore. They could hear the distant chatter of their friends under the roar of Heaven Falls, and Jester’s laugh echoed from a distance.

Yasha and Beau looked at each other. Beau chuckled awkwardly and Yasha gave a nervous smile. They both hesitated. Beau wanted to hold onto this for just a moment longer. Then at the same time, Yasha loosened her grip on Beau’s hand as Beau pulled away.

Immediately, Beau missed the contact.

“We should, uh, probably get back to the group, right?” Beau asked. She suddenly had no idea what to do with her newly free hand and awkwardly rubbed at the back of her neck.

“Probably,” Yasha whispered, her voice breathless.

Her eyes were fixed on Beau’s, then very briefly glanced down to her lips. Beau felt her cheeks flush. She felt drawn closer, wanting to lean in and close the distance, but then Yasha turned her head, looking out at the waves.

“We shouldn’t keep them waiting,” she said.

“Right,” Beau muttered. “Let’s go.”

They lingered for another moment before they both stepped onto the beach in unison.

When their friends caught sight of the pair, they rushed over to meet them halfway. Beau felt Jester’s eyes on her, studying her furiously. She was probably going to have a lot of questions later. Beau wasn’t even sure if she would have answers for her best friend. Nothing happened. She still had no idea how Yasha felt about her.

She glanced over at Yasha, who was also stealing a quick glance at her. They shared a secret smile, just meant for the two of them. Beau’s heart skipped a beat.

Well, Beau knew one thing for sure, at least. She was falling for Yasha. Hard.

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you for reading! Please message me on tumblr @elliesgaymachete if you ever want to yell about CR/beauyasha
> 
> Comments and kudos are always appreciated 💛


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